Landmarks for Sustainability is a high-impact,
quick-reference guide to many of the most critical events and initiatives that
have shaped our world, and the sustainable development agenda, over the past 20
years and more. These include high-profile historic events — such as the
Exxon Valdez oil spill, the Rio Earth Summit, the anti-globalisation
protests in Seattle and Genoa and the collapse of Enron — as well as more subtle
but no less important developments, such as trends in fairtrade, ethical codes
and sustainable investment.

By shining a spotlight on these and other landmark events and initiatives,
the book draws into sharp relief the most significant social and environmental
challenges of our time — from climate change and the state of the planet to
poverty and corruption. Equally importantly, however, more than half of the book
is dedicated to constructive global responses, such as the boom in clean
technology, the role of the World Economic and World Social Forums, and the
growth of ISO 14001 and SA8000 standards.

Each of the 20 chapters follows a similar easy-access full-colour design,
with inspiring quotations, compelling photographs, a timeline of associated
events, a narrative description of trends, and spotlight features of specific
initiatives or events, including charts, factboxes and suggestions for further
reading and websites. Also included is the world’s most comprehensive
sustainability timeline, listing and dating 190 key sustainability-related
events and initiatives that occurred between 1919 and 2008.

All these features combine to make the book an essential and highly
accessible resource for managers, teachers, students, government officials,
consultants and activists alike. For the first time, these crucial change agents
will have a single-source reference book, which is not only packed with useful
facts and figures, but is also fascinating to look at and full of inspirational
material.

This book — informative, authoritative, reliable — provides a penetrating
glance directly into the central core of one of today’s most exciting
supernova-like phenomena: the brilliant illuminating flash of Sustainability,
following the virtual and continuing collapse of conventional ways of conducting
business and caring for the planet Earth … A brief 8-page chapter neatly
summarizes each global indicator, gives prominent examples, quotes authorities,
provides graphic photos and statistical displays, and includes authoritative
pro-and-con bibliographies and website addresses … Each of these capsule
accounts is a small treasure beautifully packed with solid information and human
drama. The publisher — Greenleaf Publishing, Ltd. — deserves a big pat on the
back for the book’s artistry and compact design. One of the most useful features
is a Landmarks Timeline that records the yearly and multiple appearances of the
Sustainability Landmarks … So, who can use this book? A marvelous handbook for
executives. It slips compactly into student backpacks. A savior for faculty
looking for quick examples to squeeze into a lecture. A delight for website
geeks and bloggers international. A jewel for libraries.William C.
Frederick, October 2009. Read the full
review

The book offers sustainability facts as an introduction to the subject, as
well as being a reference book for practitioners. With an attractive look and
feel, equipped with photographs, charts and fact boxes, the book is not a boring
‘study book’, but an inspirational source.Karina Toonekurg, CSR
International. Read the full review

… it is a broad ranging, easy to read, review of the last twenty years.
Everyone who’s been involved in any of these areas of activism, innovation and
development should have a copy. It’s so easy to lose sight of how much has been
going on across so many issues, and this book is a refreshing reminder — and a
great resource to get a quick insight into developments across the whole field
of sustainability.Osbert Lancaster, 15 July 2009. Read the full review

This is a quick reference guide to all the most significant events and
initiatives since 1919 that have influenced sustainability thinking and
action.

The book is split into to two sections, which have subsections below that.
The flow starts with Global Challenges and Global Responses. Global Challenges
includes subsections on Environment health and safety which includes State of
the planet, Crisis events, Climate change and Health and safety. Global
Responses is split into Leadership, Collaboration and Management with
subsections covering such diverse topics as World Summits, Business
associations, Social enterprise, Industry initiatives, codes and standards,
corporate governance, Sustainability reporting, and stakeholder engagement. I
went through the book quite carefully and I don’t think any significant items
have been left out. A really useful tool is the Landmarks Timeline which tracks
events and initiatives from 1919 to the present.Arend Hoogervorst
(Editor), Eagle Bulletin, January 2010

Wayne Visser is Founder and CEO of the thinktank CSR
International, as well as Senior Associate of the University
of Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership. He is the
author/editor of eight books, including six on sustainable and
responsible business, among them The Top 50 Sustainability Books(Greenleaf Publishing,
2009), Making a Difference (VDM, 2008) and The A to Z of
Corporate Social Responsibility (John Wiley, 2007).

Before getting his PhD in Corporate Social Responsibility
(Nottingham University, UK), Wayne was Director of Sustainability
Services for KPMG and Strategy Analyst for Capgemini in South Africa.
He has an MSc in Human Ecology (Edinburgh University,UK) and a
Bachelor of Business Science in Marketing (Cape Town University,
South Africa).

Wayne lives in Cambridge, UK, and enjoys art, writing poetry, spending
time outdoors and travelling in his home continent of Africa. His
personal website is www.waynevisser.com.

Research associate

Oliver Dudok van Heel is passionate about finding
solutions to the sustainability challenges we face as a society. He
believes that by bringing together human ingenuity with respect for our
wonderful planet and its people we can develop solutions and create a
planet worth living for.

He tries to make this vision reality in
different ways. Oliver founded Living Values to help integrate
sustainability within corporations. He is a tutor on the University of
Cambridge’s Postgraduate Certificate on Sustainable Business and a
facilitator of the Be The Change Symposium. He helped launch the Lewes
Pound, a local currency, to support the local community and reduce its
carbon footprint, as part of the Transition Towns movement. He is also a
co-founder of Transition Training and Consulting.

Oliver speaks
English, French, Dutch, German, Spanish and Portuguese and holds a
Master’s of Law and an Insead MBA.

The University of Cambridge Programme for
Sustainability Leadership (CPSL) works with business, government
and civil society to deepen the understanding of those who shape the
future and help them respond creatively and positively to sustainability
challenges.

Our focus on deepening understanding of sustainability
through seminars, leadership groups and practical engagement builds on the
University’s strengths as one of the world’s premier academic
institutions. Our programmes provide opportunities for leaders to explore
and debate key social and environmental trends and their significance
within the global economic and political context. We draw on the
intellectual breadth of the University and on leading thinkers and
practitioners from around the world to help participants examine the array
of strategic risks and opportunities and make decisions on the basis of a
real appreciation of cutting-edge science, world-class thinking and best
practice in business and government.

Our programmes include
flagship initiatives inspired by the vision of our Patron, HRH The Prince
of Wales. This unique coalition between the University and His Royal
Highness gives the Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership the
power to convene thought leaders and top-level decision-makers from across
the world in order to advance innovative thinking and transformational
change.